FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—The state of Arkansas received approval Tuesday from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to ban the purchase of both soft drinks and candy with food stamps.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has signed a waiver enabling Arkansas Gov. Sarah Sanders to ban the unhealthy foods from Arkansas’ Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the formal name for food stamps.
Arkansas joins Nebraska in getting a waiver from the Trump administration to combat America’s health crisis that way.
“This approval sends a clear message: President Trump and his administration are tackling America’s chronic disease epidemic, and Arkansas stands with him in that fight,” Sanders said of the move.
“I am incredibly grateful for Secretary Rollins’ quick approval of our waiver. Arkansas leads the nation in getting unhealthy, ultra-processed foods off food stamps and helping our most vulnerable citizens lead healthier lives,” said the Republican governor.
About 23% of the cost of food stamps, which cost the federal government more than $100 billion per year, goes to cover soft drinks, candy, unhealthy snacks, and desserts. That translates to billions of dollars in taxpayer money that ends up paying for those foods.
That the U.S. suffers from an epidemic of chronic disease is no exaggeration. One-third of the residents of Arkansas have diabetes or prediabetes. Sanders’ decision is also backed by health data. One Stanford University study found that even simply banning sugary drinks from being covered under food stamps could save 141,000 children from obesity and 240,000 adults from Type 2 diabetes.
Sanders’ decision is aimed at combating the trend of Americans who become hooked on unhealthy foods as children and subsequently struggle to combat the addictive nature of the chemicals in those foods.
In recent months, the Arkansas governor has positioned her state to lead in making America healthy again.
She signed into law in February bipartisan legislation that enables every Arkansas child to get free breakfast before the school day even if they do not qualify for free or reduced meals under federal law. The new law directs medical marijuana tax revenue to fund school breakfasts and lunches in the future.
Sanders has also been a strong supporter of providing food assistance for families with children who qualify for the National School Lunch Program during the summer months as well, through the Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer program.
Sanders took office as governor of Arkansas in January 2023. She previously served as White House press secretary during the first Trump administration. Her father, Mike Huckabee, was also governor of Arkansas, from 1996 to 2007.